The supply of chemicals for aerial fire suppression across the US has been locked in with the announcement by US Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins that the nation’s Forest Service and Department of Interior’s aerial wildland firefighting force has entered into a new five-year contract.

The new contract is with Perimeter Solutions, a US-based fire supply company, which supplies a range of firefighting chemicals to governments and agencies around the world.

The company, already a long-time supplier of wildfire products to the USDA, CalFire and others, has secured the dominant position as the supplier of fire-retardant in the US for the next five years

Perimeter, according to its website has manufacturing facilities in US, Canada, France, Spain, Germany and Australia. The new contract, however, states that 100 percent of Perimeter’s retardant for federal use will be manufactured in the US.

In a company statement Perimeter claims a “made in America, for America” commitment. “Combined with an increased commitment to sourcing domestic raw materials, the contract reinforces Perimeter’s support for American manufacturing, supply chain diversification, and national resilience. The USDA will receive the lowest pricing Perimeter offers.  Together, the benefits of the contract are a result of operational efficiencies and long-term investment in US-based infrastructure by Perimeter Solutions”

In 2024, US federal agencies dropped 48.6 million gallons of fire retardant to fight wildfires. Rollins, in her announcement, boasted that the new contract would save American taxpayers $153 million over the next five years “…including a negotiated direct price reduction and additional cost savings transitioning to full-service bases and powder retardant by 2030.”

“This contract is a tremendous win for America’s taxpayers, our rural communities, and the brave men and women who fight wildfires every day,” Rollins said. “By locking in historic cost savings and bringing every step of the fire-retardant supply chain back to American soil, we are protecting lives, saving communities from destruction, and keeping America safe, strong, and resilient. This agreement proves that when we put America first, we get the best results for our people and our land.”

WildfireToday reached out to the USDA for specifics on where the $153 million in savings comes from, but the agency has not returned our request for comment as of this article’s publication.